According to the ruling upheld by the Supreme Court, marital infidelity or a husband having a mistress can be considered psychological violence against women.
The Supreme Court affirmed the ruling of the Regional Trial Court and the Court of Appeals in a case where marital infidelity was considered psychological violence in violation of Republic Act 9262 or the Violence Against Women and Children Act of 2004.
“The prosecution has established beyond reasonable doubt that [the husband] committed the crime of psychological violence, through his acts of marital infidelity, which caused mental or emotional suffering on the part of AAA [the wife],” the Supreme Court’s first division said.
Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta, who wrote the decision, also affirmed a minimum of six months to a maximum of eight-year prison terms against the husband for Section 5(i) of the Anti-Violence Against Women and Children (VAWC) Act.
According to Section 5 of the VAWC, acts of violence against women and children refers to acts “causing mental or emotional anguish, public ridicule or humiliation to the woman or her child, including, but not limited to, repeated verbal and emotional abuse, and denial of financial support or custody of minor children of access to the woman’s child/children.”
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SC affirms marital infidelity is considered ‘psychological violence’
The court also ordered the husband to pay a P100,000 fine and P25,000 as moral damages. He is also mandated to undergo mandatory psychological counseling or psychiatric treatment to address his abusive behavior.
What happened in the case is the husband left his wife to live in Zamboanga with the mistress and had three more children.
It was 2007 when the wife confirmed an extramarital affair, and later an agreement was reached that he would not meet with the mistress again. But after two months, the husband suddenly left.
The mistress called and said that the husband was ill and even threatened to kill him. Because of what happened, the wife felt emotional anguish.
In retrospect, the wife filed a Petition for Habeas Corpus to release the husband, but he found out that the two were living together freely and found out that he had three children.